This past weekend, BRP Can-Am Spyder roadster owners from all over North America rode to Los Angeles for the Ryde to the Red Carpet event. This years annual owners event the second for Spyder was in celebration of the Spyder roadster role in this summers blockbuster hit, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen. Two hundred twenty Spyder roadsters and 410 Spyder owners were parading around the Los Angeles and Hollywood streets for three straight days.
Most of the owners stayed at the host hotel, the Sheraton Universal. Roadsters even took over the parking garage as the whole first floor of the garage was for Spyder parking only. There were countless photos, stories and handshakes exchanged among the owners and their passengers.
The festivities started on Friday night as more than 100 owners/riders on nearly 70 Spyder roadsters went to Bobs Big Boy in Burbank for their famous car night. It was quite the sight as the Spyder riders expanded and took an entire section of the parking lot. Even Jay Leno made an appearance not on his Spyder #001, but with a few friends in one of his many classic cars.
Day two started early with owners heading to the festivities around 7:15 a.m. They were welcomed by the Universal CityWalk parking crew with VIP spaces right next to the action. With the 200-plus Spyder roadsters parked together, it was an impressive sight.
After breakfast, BRP held a welcome presentation for all attendees outside of the AMC cinema. Vice President of Can-Am, Yves Leduc, and Director of Marketing, Marc Lacroix, acted as Masters of Ceremony and announced the winners of the esteemed BRP Spyder Awards.
The awards were as followed:
Best Personalized Spyder: PE# 443 Sharon Diezmo from Nevada
Most Mileage on a Spyder to date: Doru Ticsa – 38,650 miles
The owner who traveled the furthest distance to the owners event: Jocelyn Noreau traveled 3,009 miles/4,814 km from Quebec City, Canada to Burbank, California.
Owners who demonstrate true Spyder passion on the web: Lamont Bryden – SpyderLovers.com, Marc Pukos and Craig Deats – SpyderTalk.com, Lou Gutowski and Veronica Dunford – West Coast Spyder
Spyder Elite Owners who have logged more than 25,000 miles on their Spyder:Doru Ticsa: Clearwater, FL; Lamont Bryden: Mosheim, TN; Mark Adams: Fanny Bay, BC Canada; Ken Miller: El Cajon, CA; and TJ Fischer: Simi Valley, CA.
After much applause and “Go Spyder” chants, it was time to walk the red carpet for a photo op, grab some complimentary refreshments and cheer on their Spyder roadster as it makes its movie debut in what some critics are claiming to be this summers blockbuster hit, Transformers 2: The Revenge of the Fallen.
The Spyder roadsters, decked in the Phantom Black body kit, played a role in the governments secret NEST force deployed globally to protect the human race from the Decepticons that were infuriating the world.
After the Spyder owners private screening, the 200-plus Spyder owners hopped on the famous Route 2: Angeles Crest Highway and up through the canyons for an amazing ride and some of the best views in California. Even with the difficult Los Angeles traffic, the group stayed together very well considering its size, and even pulled over to stop at a midpoint for a nice photo op.
In all, the ride lasted about three hours with beautiful sunny weather throughout and plenty of smiling faces at the end. Owners went at their own pace, with plenty of people taking aggressive corners and others taking a nice, slow “enjoy the scenery” pace.
The final day saw many of the Spyder owners trying to get an early start home from an eventful week. But a nice size group stuck around to take part in a Spyder Poker Run and then for a special unveiling at the Peterson Automotive Museum.
For three days, the Spyder roadster owners rubbed elbows with Jay Leno, were treated to a private viewing of Transformers 2, got to walk a red carpet and help induct the Spyder roadster into one of the most prestigious automotive museums in the world.
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Loved the article. I ride with my boyfriend and just purchased my first bike to learn. My ultimate bike is the Spyder. I am 60 years old and can’t wait to ride alone and feel the wind on my back.
You can find more information on the Spyder at spyderlovers.com. I have had my Spyder since December 08 and I love it.
My husband and I bought a Spyder just about a month ago. We absolutely love it. Over 2,000 miles on it already. The article of how many Spyders out there was incredible for me since we haven't seen one yet here in our area. I just want you to know, I am 70 years old. My husband took me to a large church parking lot to learn how to drive it. I started two weeks aqo to get the feel, learn all the right things, rules (along with your CD disk) of what to do and when and now I am already up to 5th gear and loving every single second of this fantastic “toy” my husband bought.
If we could have afforded two I definitely would have one as well. He is now retired and we would have loved to go to this fantastic event if I had my own. The article put me right there and enjoyed everything about the day. Thank you for sharing. I will take my driving test shortly and can't wait to get on the road with it.